[Sir Gerald Howarth in the Chair]

The Chair:: Good morning. I thank the witnesses for attending. This is an important Bill, and it is important that we have the opportunity to hear expert evidence. You are probably aware that members of the Committee have already received the briefings that you issued, so I do not propose to request that you go through yours; you can assume that people have read it, so we will go straight into questioning. I ask each witness to introduce themselves for the record, from left to right—purely topographically—and to say which organisation you represent.

The Chair:: I shall bring in the Minister responsible for the Bill, Rebecca Pow.

The Chair:: There is no obligation to do so, but if any other witnesses want to add anything to that, they are very welcome to.

The Chair:: Thank you. Diedre Brock, do you have any questions?

The Chair:: In that case, I call Robbie Moore.

The Chair:: I am going to start taking questions in twos because we do not have a lot of time left, but is there a follow-on question specifically on that?

The Chair:: Thank you. I will take two questions now. Perhaps the witnesses will decide between them who is the most appropriate person to respond in each case. I know that might be asking a bit much, but try and think about that.

The Chair:: And on Abena’s point?

The Chair:: I will take two more questions. We really are pushed for time, so if Members could make their questions as concise as possible, that would be really helpful. We will start with Kerry McCarthy and then go to Cherilyn Mackrory.

The Chair:: I am afraid we have time for only one more question, and I am not sure that we will have adequate time for all the witnesses to respond. Alex Sobel, please be very brief.

The Chair:: Very quickly.

The Chair:: Order. I am afraid that brings us to the end of the time allotted for the Committee to ask questions. On behalf of the Committee, I thank the witnesses for their forbearance. I know it has been   difficult to squeeze in all the information, but I am sure the whole Committee has found it very informative and helpful in shaping our views.

The Chair:: Good afternoon. We will now hear evidence from Water UK, Blueprint for Water and the Marine Conservation Society. We have until 1 pm, but it has been very difficult to get through all the questions in the time allocated. As Members of the Committee do not seem to understand what “concise” means, I ask them to condense their questions. Our witnesses are very welcome. Do not feel that you have to answer every question if you do not have anything to add to what the others have already said.

The Chair:: Minister, would you like to add to our proceedings?

The Chair:: We will have to be very quick.

The Chair:: Order. That brings us to the end of the time allotted for the Committee to ask questions. On behalf of the Committee, I thank the witnesses for the very thorough and informative way in which they have responded to the questions.